October 4, 2018

Chow chow kootu (Chayote in English) is one my most favorite kootu recipes. Basically chow chow is a vegetable with rich water content. It doesn’t have any particular smell or taste. Generally we Tamil people make this chow chow kootu at least once in a week in our regular lunch menu. Its a good side dish for vatha kuzhambu and puli kulambu. In my family, both mom and MIL make chow chow kootu with small variations. My MIL adds moong dal whereas my mom adds chana dal along with coconut, green chilli paste. Usually we add small onion while grinding coconut but this kootu can be prepared without onion as well. It tastes and smells good in both the ways. My mom adds little milk at the end to give a rich taste and to look white in color. I combine my mom and mil’s recipes and make this kootu in a pressure cooker directly to ease my job. For variations, this kootu can be prepared adding sambar powder too. In that case, kootu looks orange in color. Ok, lets see how to make chow chow kootu / Chayote kootu with step by step pictures in an easy way using pressure cooker.

Add moong dal and mix well. Add the ground coconut paste, required salt and mix well. Add 1/2 cup of water. Close the pressure cooker and keep the flame high. As soon as the steam comes from the nozzle, put the weight valve and reduce the flame to low completely. Pressure cook in very low flame for one whistle. It takes 8 to 10 minutes.

Switch off the flame after one whistle. Remove the cooker lid after the steam is released. Mix well, add milk and check the consistency. If the kootu is too thick, add 1/4 cup of water, give one boil. If its watery, boil for few minutes to reach the desired consistency. Switch off the flame.

Serve with vatha kuzhambu rice or puli kulambu rice. Tastes great with sutta appalam / roasted papad. If you like, you can mix this kootu with plain rice adding ghee.
Enjoy !

Note

Do not add more green chillies. Kootu will become spicy.

Do not add more water in the pressure cooker. As this vegetable itself is rich in water content, it will cook easily in less water.

Do not skip cumin seeds while grinding coconut. It adds a nice flavor.

You can avoid onion while grinding if you are making this kootu on vrat/ fasting days.

For variations, chana dal can be used instead of moong dal. Soak chana dal for 15 minutes for perfect cooking.

Similarly sambar powder can be used in place of green chilli. One chopped tomato can also be used in the cooker. In that case, kootu looks orange in color.

Try this easy, yummy chow chow kootu in a pressure cooker and enjoy with rice.

June 11, 2018

Today I have shared a South Indian version of methi dal called as vendhaya keerai paruppu kadayal in Tamil. I learnt this easy, one pot dal recipe from my neighbor. Its a no grind recipe without coconut. Usually I make vendhaya keerai kootu using moong dal and ground coconut paste. When my neighbor shared this easy kadaiyal with similar ingredients like kootu, I got tempted to try it. We can mix this paruppu kadayal with plain rice adding ghee. It tastes yum. As it an easy recipe which can be prepared easily in a pressure cooker, bachelors and working women may find it helpful to cook easily during busy morning hours. Do try this easy vendhaya keerai paruppu and let me know your feedback.

METHOD

Pressure cook in very low flame for 2 whistles.Mash the dal completely.

Temper all the ingredients and add to the dal. Mix well.

Serve with plain rice adding few drops of ghee.

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Wash and clean the fenugreek leaves. In a pressure cooker base, take moong dal, washed fenugreek leaves, chopped tomato, onion, garlic cloves, slit green chilli, chilli powder, salt and turmeric powder. Cook for 2 whistles in low flame. Alternatively you can pressure cook dal and remaining ingredients separately. For variations, you can saute the methi leaves in oil till it shrinks, then add to the cooker.

Open the cooker after the steam is released. Mash the dal mixture with a whisk or ladle. Check for taste and add more salt if needed.

In a small kadai, heat ghee. Splutter mustard seeds, cumin seeds, crushed garlic cloves and curry leaves. Add to the dal. Mix well and boil for few minutes till semi thick in consistency. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with plain rice adding few drops of ghee.

Enjoy !

Note

Adjust the quantity of green chilli and chilli powder as per your taste.

You can also saute the fenugreek leaves in little oil before adding to the pressure cooker. It helps to reduce the bitterness of fenugreek leaves.

May 15, 2018

Peerakangai kootu / Peerkangai poricha kuzhambu/ Beerakaya kootu (In Telugu) / Ridge gourd kootu (in English) is an easy, one pot side dish for rice. This ridge gourd kootu goes well with vatha kuzhambu and Kara kuzhambu rice. But we love to eat this poricha kootu by mixing with plain rice adding ghee. So I make this kootu slightly thin in consistency. Usually we make peerkangai kuzhambu and ridge gourd skin chutney / thogayal for rice. But when I was asking my MIL to teach some new recipes using ridge gourd, she suggested this easy poricha kulambu recipe that can be prepared directly using a pressure cooker. Friends, do try this easy peerkangai poricha kuzhambu for a change. You will love it for sure. I have used moong dal / Paasi paruppu in this kootu. You can also use Chana dal/ Kadalai paruppu just like hotel style kootu recipes. It tastes good for vatha kuzhambu and Kara kuzhambu. If you like, you can have it with chapathi too. Lets see how to make this easy peerkangai kootu in pressure cooker with step by step pictures.

Pressure cook in low flame for one whistle. Serve with rice or as side dish for vatha kuzhambu and kara kuzhambu.

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Wash and peel the skin of ridge gourd using a peeler. Chop into thick round shaped slices. Set aside. If you are using chana dal instead of moong dal, soak it in enough water for 30 minutes before cooking. No need to soak for moong dal.

In the mean time, grind coconut + rice flour to a smooth paste. Add the coconut paste to the boiling kootu in pressure cooker. Close the cooker and pressure cook in very low flame for one whistle.

Open the cooker after steam is released. Mix well and check the consistency of kootu. If its too thick, add little water and mix well. If its too thin, boil for some time till thick. Serve with rice.

Enjoy !

Note

For variations, you can use red chilli powder + dhania powder 1 tsp each instead of sambar powder.

You can make the same kootu using snake gourd, bottle gourd.

Try this easy, yummy peerkangai kootu for rice and enjoy !
I enjoyed it by mixing this kootu with plain rice and ghee. In the plate, you can find cabbage curry, goosberry thogayal and microwave roasted papad.

May 7, 2018

Vazhaipoo kootu / Banana flower kootu/ Plantain flower kootu is my recent try in vazhaipoo recipes. I followed my MIL’s South Indian, Tamil nadu style basic kootu recipe with some modifications and tried it. It came out very well. Its a very simple kootu recipe that can be prepared in a pressure cooker directly. It can be prepared under 15 minutes if you have cleaned banana flower ready in hand. Banana flower, moong dal, sambar powder and coconut are the main ingredients in this recipe. I am happy that I got an easy, yummy recipe with banana flower other than my usual vazhaipoo vadai, vazhaipoo poriyal and vazhaipoo dosa. My MIL makes vazhaipoo/ vazhaithandu mor kootu. Soon I will share that recipe too. Now lets see how to make South Indian, Tamil nadu style Vazhaipoo kootu recipe with step by step pictures.

Add sambar powder, turmeric powder, salt. Mix well. Grind coconut + rice flour to a smooth paste. Add 1 cup of water, coconut paste and mix well. Pressure cook for one whistle in very low flame. Open the cooker after the steam is released. Mix well and add some water if the kootu is too thick. Suppose if the kootu is watery, boil for some time till thick.

Mix well and serve with vatha kuzhambu rice, kara kuzhambu or curd rice. If you like, you can mix this kootu in plain rice adding ghee.

Enjoy !

Note

Adjust the quantity of sambar powder for spicy taste.

To replace sambar powder, use red chilli powder + coriander powder.

You can also saute one red chilli while tempering for more spicy taste.

Do not reduce the quantity of coconut and tomato because vazhaipoo may taste slightly bitter based on its variety.

You can replace moong dal with soaked chana dal or soaked toor dal.

To replace tomato, you can add 1/2 tsp of tamarind extract too.

You can follow the same recipe and use banana stem/ Vazhaithandu instead of vazhaipoo.

March 19, 2018

Sorakkai kootu / Bottle gourd kootu for rice is an easy to make, yummy South Indian style kootu recipe with coconut, moong dal. I make it as side dish for vathakuzhambu. Long back, I had shared my MIL’s sorakkai paal kootu and sorakkai sweet kootu recipes. Recent days, you would have seen me making all my kuzhambu, poriyal and kootu recipes prepared using pressure cooker easily. For this recipe too, I have used my pressure cooker to ease my job. It came out very tasty and flavorful. I loved it with vathakuzhambu rice and curd rice. For variations, you can use chana dal instead of moong dal like hotel ones. Friends, do try this easy, healthy bottle gourd kootu at home and share your feedback with me. Lets see how to make Sorakkai kootu for rice with step by step pictures.

Add the coconut paste to the cooker. Cover and cook in very low flame for 2 whistles.

Open the lid after steam is released.

Mix well and serve hot with rice.

METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES

Wash and peel the skin of bottle gourd/ Sorakkai. Cut into two halves.Now remove the spongy center portion which has seeds.Chop the hard portion into small cubes. Set aside. Grind coconut + rice flour to smooth paste adding required water. Keep it apart.

November 29, 2017

I learnt this pudalangai kadalai paruppu masala kootu / snake gourd kootu for rice from my friend Megha. This is not like the usual version of kootu. This kootu has a mild masala flavor with ginger garlic paste. I have already shared a brinjal masala kuzhambu learning from my friend Megha. This is also a very similar recipe but I have used soaked chana dal/ kadalai paruppu. In some hotels, they serve this kind of kootu. I make this kootu directly in a pressure cooker to ease my job. I also make it slightly thin like a gravy and mix with rice & ghee. If you make it thick, you can have it as side dish for rice or chapathi. It tastes more like kurma kulambu. Whenever I make this pudalangai kootu, I make some spicy rasam to go with it. It would be a simple but comforting meal for us. Ok, Lets see how to make snake gourd kootu with chana dal for rice.

Mix well and pressure cook in very low flame for 2 whistles.Remove the lid after the steam is released. If the kootu is watery, boil for sometime to make it thick. If its too thick, add little water, mix well and boil for few seconds.

We make it as a gravy and eat it by mixing with plain rice adding ghee.We serve with puli kuzhambu too. Usually I make kothavarangai sambar or poriyal. But recently I started making this kootu learning from my MIL. It is prepared with cluster beans, moong dal, tamarind sambar powder and ground coconut paste. We love its taste and flavor. To make my job simple, I make this kootu directly in a pressure cooker. So this side dish for rice can be prepared under 15 minutes. Do try this healthy cluster beans kootu at home and enjoy with plain rice & ghee. Lets see how to make kothavarangai poricha kuzhambu with step by step photos !

Pressure cook in very low flame for 2 whistles. Open the lid after the steam is released. Mix well and check for thickness. If the kootu is very thick, add 1/4 cup water, mix well and boil for a minute. If its watery, boil for 2 minutes till kootu becomes thick.

Serve this kootu with puli kuzhambu or vatha kuzhambu. You can mix this with plain rice adding a tsp of ghee. Tastes great !

Enjoy !

Note

Adjust the quantity of sambar powder as per your taste.

If you don’t have sambar powder, you can replace with 3/4 tsp red chilli powder and 1 tsp dhania powder.

You can also use one tomato ( finely chopped) instead of tamarind extract.

Addition of cumin seeds & onion for grinding adds a nice flavor to this kootu. So do not avoid it unless you make a no onion no garlic kootu.